By Cheryl Jahn

SD91 student heads to Mars

Jun 6, 2022 | 3:16 PM

VANDERHOOF – It looks a lot like the surface of Mars and one lucky student from Nechako Valley Secondary School is there, learning about how mankind can survive on the Red Planet.

“I’ve always been pretty interested in the concept of space,” says Dominic Giesbrecht, Grade 10 Student at Nechako Valley Secondary School in Vanderhoof. “I enjoyed learning and seeing everything about it.”

There are two parts to this trip. The first is the science behind living on Mars. There will be biologists and ecologists on hand, as well as experts on space health; anyone who has an interest in making life on Mars sustainable.

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“Those folks come to the Research Centre to do studies about Mars,” says Darren Carpenter, Coordinator for District Careers and Trades. “So it’s a whole replica of what a Mars base would look like as one would perceive it as NASA. So they do all the things we would see in a movie. They would dress up in the space suits with the air and they’ve got some modified ATVs that look like rovers. So that takes place all the time.”

But Dominic is going to the Mars Research Centre with another mission in mind, one that literally records not only what he’s learning at the time, but also the post-production, which is what drew him to the trip.

“I’ve seen, obviously, lots of shows and movies and interviews and all that,” says Geisbrecht. “And I thought that would be really cool to do something like that on my own. That it would be fun to learn.”

What he ultimately produces will be used for educational purposes.

“In each one of those productions, there are lesson plans, First Nations connections and acknowledgments and how it all ties together for a teacher to bring that content in a classroom,” explains Carpenter.

So, while Dominic is off in space, so to speak, he will be able to share this experience will hundreds of students and teachers alike.